Revelations
by syren pan
Summary: Sanji has a secret which will lead Zoro to discover something new about himself.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: One Piece © Oda Eiichiro. No copyright infringement intended. Just borrowing the boys for non-profit fun. All characters depicted in sexual situations in syren pan's fan fiction are fictional and are intended to be and considered to be by the author of said material of the legal age of consent regardless of what age these characters may be in the material they are derived from.

**Alabasta**

'You didn't even look, marimo!' The cook sounded almost offended as he flapped up and down in front of Zoro like an overexcited duck.

He had shown up out of no-where, all tense and wound up, and interrupted Zoro's concentration while training. Why of all the sea cooks in the four blue seas had Luffy recruited that one?

The guy was really getting on Zoro's nerves. Fine, yeah, maybe he came in handy in a fight, and his grub was edible but was all that really worth the constant idiocy the crew - and for unknown reasons especially Zoro - had to put up with?

Zoro's jaw had tensed the second he had smelled the perpetual nicotine cloud before the slim figure had appeared in his field of vision and started to have an attack of verbal diarrhoea. Something about a bath as far as Zoro had cared to follow the tirade.

'What the hell are you on about?' Zoro finally asked with an annoyed sigh. Maybe if he played along the asshole would disappear sooner.

Sanji gaped at him, cigarette dangling from his lower lip. 'You are impossible! If I hadn't seen it I would doubt you have the right equipment to call yourself a man.'

'What?' Zoro really had better things to do with his time than indulge Sanji's insanity. 'Whatever, fuck off, love cook.'

'Oh, getting defensive are we?'

Yep, the guy was definitely insane. Maybe that was what this was about? Sanji had slipped in the bath earlier and hit his head?

Nah, he had been insufferable before.

'Can't get it up – well, that explains a lot actually.' Sanji carried on with a self-satisfied smirk.

Wait a second...

'In need to get the shit kicked out of you, aren't you?' Fine by Zoro, knocking the cook around would substitute nicely for a couple of push-ups.

'Thought you'd never ask,' was all Sanji said before the first kick hit Zoro squarely in the chest.

~X~

Ten minutes later they were both lying on their backs, panting and aching in a good way. Chopper would probably get mad at them for aggravating their injuries but it had been worth it.

To his astonishment, Zoro admitted silently to the sky that fighting the stupid curly-eyebrow was oddly ...satisfying,

The by now familiar click of Sanji's lighter snapping shut, made him turn his head and look at the other man. Blue eyes met Zoro's own as the cook puffed away on his nicotine stick.

'So, why didn't you look? You are after all not a eunuch.' Sanji finally asked, making Zoro uncomfortably aware of the fact that he had been staring into the other's eyes for a very long time.

Zoro quickly sat up to cover for his embarrassment. 'What?'

With an exasperated sigh Sanji sat up beside him. 'You really weren't listening at all, were you?'

'I might listen on the day you actually have something to say, cook.' Zoro already felt the satisfaction from the fight draining away only to be replaced by the usual annoyance he associated with Sanji's company.

'Never mind, marimo. I got what I came for.' And with those words the cook got up and sauntered away.

'What the hell is that supposed to mean?' Zoro asked the faint trail of smoke the other man had left behind.

**~X~x~X~**


	2. Chapter 2

**Water 7 – Part 1**

The people of Water 7 sure knew a thing or two about distilling booze. Paulie had told him twice already what that stuff was called but Zoro couldn't remember the name which didn't really matter because there was plenty of it and his glass was refilled as soon as it was empty.

It was a great evening. His nakama were safe, the food was outstanding – you had to give it to the shitty love cook, he had his way with condiments – and a good time was had by everyone.

He and Paulie were rehashing the attack on Enies Lobby. 'Man, the way you and Strawhat split that wave – that was... outstanding.' Paulie exclaimed in what seemed genuine admiration. He leaned in to pad the swordsman on the shoulder.

Zoro grinned back. Usually he didn't care for flattery but a little appreciation from time to time didn't hurt either.

'And later, the way you cut through that gate I thought I must be dreaming. That couldn't possibly be real! Sure as hell gave those Marines a reason to shit their pants. Mwhaha.' Paulie continued his praise, leaning into Zoro's personal space again.

'It was a good day,' Zoro agreed, smiling and watching his nakama dance around the fire. Almost instinctively he tried to account for all of them, ticking their names of an imaginary list. He could see them all except for... no, there he was trying to feel up Robin under the pretense of dancing. Not that it looked like he was having much luck. Feh. That woman was too smart for him anyway. Perverted love cook!

'More?' Paulie's voice asked suddenly very close, dragging his attention back to the shipwright who had yet to remove his arm from Zoro's shoulder.

A warm feeling started to spread in Zoro's stomach, probably the booze, but something felt a little off by now. Yet not weird enough that he would turn down another round of free drinks. He extended his glass.

'Yeah, that's the spirit!' Paulie exclaimed enthusiastically, refilling the glass with one hand while his other somehow landed on Zoro's neck in what could be interpreted as a friendly clasp between comrades but actually felt more like a rough caress.

'Kanpai!' Their glasses clinked together and both men drank deeply.

Strong calloused fingers were definitely massaging the nape of Zoro's neck by the time he had emptied his glass again. He wasn't quite sure what to make of it. It actually felt kind of nice but he had never been the touchy-feely type, even with his nakama who were on the whole quite big on hugging each other. On the rare occasions he did touch someone else it was usually to pummel them into the ground which probably meant the person he had most physical contact with was Sanji.

As if the thought had conjured him, Zoro was suddenly seized from behind by familiar strong hands and dragged backwards, away from a very puzzled looking Paulie and his caressing fingers.

'You are coming with me, marimo,' was all the owner of the hands was saying while he dragged Zoro into the shadows of deserted buildings.

'The hell...,' the green haired man struggled free once he had recovered from the shock. Copious amounts of alcohol had obviously affected his reactions, he made a mental note to train more.

'What the fuck, cook?'

Sanji had let go as soon as he had started to struggle. Annoyed, the swordsman scrambled to his feet a little less gracefully than he usually would. 'What are you doing, idiot?'

They hadn't gone far, Zoro could still hear faint laughter and music but the light from the party fires didn't reach wherever it was they were. The cook's lighter briefly cast a golden glow between them before the familiar smell of nicotine mingled with the overpowering scent of brine.

'Saving your virtue, stupid marimo!' Sanji replied calmly.

'You... what?'

Sanji exhaled, making a sound somewhere between a sigh and a chuckle. 'Two more minutes and rope guy would have had his tongue down your throat. Ten more minutes and you would have lost your virginity in one of those deserted buildings,' he explained, gesturing with the cigarette towards the tall shadows around them.

Zoro's chin sagged out of its own volition. His mind tried to settle on a train of thought but nothing coherent would emerge for a good long while.

The bloody cook just stood there smoking and going by the smirk around the corners of his mouth, enjoying Zoro's temporary befuddlement.

The swordsman's jaw snapped shut with an audible clack. Changing his stance, arms folded across his chest, face set in grim lines, he waited for Sanji to crush the cigarette butt under his shoe.

'Who said I needed rescuing?'

The line had the desired effect. Sanji's head snapped up. Several emotions played on his face before the expression settled on something akin to mild disbelief. 'I happen to have some experience in that department,' Sanji explained with an air of arrogance and added magnanimously, 'You are welcome! Now if you excuse me I left some ladies devastated when I had to rush off to safe your sorry ass.'

'Oh, I don't doubt you know everything about molesting, I saw you with Robin. But what makes you think I wasn't exactly where I wanted to be?'

Now it was Sanji's turn to gape. Zoro knew he would treasure this moment for some time to come. Predictably, the cook automatically fumbled for another cigarette. He noticed with glee that the other's hands were shaking.

Zoro waited patiently for his nakama to smoke the cigarette down to the filter and was about to speak when he caught Sanji's expression. He felt the smirk slip from his face.

'For real?' Sanji asked, perfectly serious.

End of Part 2


	3. Chapter 3

**Water 7 – Part 2**

Suddenly Zoro felt as good as sober. He hadn't expected Sanji to take him seriously but worst of all, he wasn't entirely sure any more he had been kidding. Honestly, he had never given it much thought.

They stared at each other in the moonlight. The swordsman suspected that his face mirrored the shock plastered all over the cook's.

'Zoro?'

'I...I am not sure,' was as close to the truth as he could get at the moment.

Zoro watched Sanji open his mouth a few times but nothing would come out. Eventually, he waved impatiently in Zoro's direction as if he tried to chase away a fly and settled for his go-to response: lighting up again.

For a fleeting moment he considered asking the cook for a cigarette just to distract him from the uneasy situation but in the interest of his health he decided against it. Emotions were whirling through him and none of them familiar or pleasant. He wasn't the kind of guy to dwell on his feelings or puzzle over the implications.

Zoro understood ambition, determination and loyalty, and their counterparts: indifference, cowardice and betrayal. He knew he cared for his nakama and valued the importance of promises. There was of course annoyance – something he felt most often in his current company but that was as far as his introspection usually went.

All these strange new emotions were unsettling to put it mildly, therefore Zoro decided to focus on his own go-to response: being annoyed with the dartboard eyebrow for dragging them out in the open.

Fully intending to start a fight that would get them geared up and back on familiar territory with the usually satisfying end result of feeling sore and relaxed at the same time like after a good work out, Zoro marched toward Sanji and very abruptly felt at a loss how to start it. What could he say? 'You make me think about things I rather not think about,' was lame on top of being cowardly.

He looked at the other man's profile who was apparently too lost in thought to notice Zoro's presence. All the mustered up annoyance evaporated like the smoke from Sanji's cigarettes and somehow it suddenly mattered a great deal what the cook thought of this...this situation and the swordsman didn't know how to ask for his opinion.

Before he could come up with a way to phrase the question, the cook suddenly grabbed his wrist and dragged him with him toward one of the tall shadows. It seemed to be the night of Sanji dragging him to places, Zoro noticed wryly.

'Where are we going now, cook?'

'We need to talk.'

Zoro was about to point out that Sanji acted like a damn girl until he caught the look on the man's face. It instantly reminded him that a part of him was dying to find out what the other made of this new revelation and decided to let the cook drag him through the moonlit streets.

They entered one of the buildings without knocking. To Zoro's surprise, it turned out to be their quarters. Since everyone was at the party and would probably remain there for some time, they had the place to themselves.

Sanji lit an oil lamp and placed it on the common room table. After further rummaging through a few cupboards he produced two glasses and two bottles of sake. 'I would warm this but I don't think my brain can wait that long,' Sanji muttered while he poured for both of them.

The swordsman wasn't too sure what the cook was on about but accepted the offered glass without comment. Sanji clinked his glass against Zoro's before he downed the entire content and promptly went for a refill. Zoro watched his nakama with raised eyebrows. He couldn't recall ever seeing Sanji drink like he meant it. Usually it was all sip here, sip there like the prissy little bitch he was.

Ah, familiar thoughts. The swordsman smiled to himself before he sampled the booze. Not as good as the stuff Paulie had served but not bad either.

Paulie... The shipwright had been awfully close earlier. Way closer than Zoro would normally be comfortable with. Yet it hadn't bothered him at the time. It had just been ...different? ...maybe even nice?

As if he had read his thoughts, Sanji finally spoke. 'That guy was practically in your lap and you didn't mind? That's not like you.' His voice sounded almost like he was making an accusation but it came out more incredulous as if he he couldn't believe it to be true.

Zoro pondered that for a moment. 'It seemed all right at the time,' he finally replied with a shrug.

'I never thought... I mean you are... I always figured you didn't... gaaarr...' The blonde man grabbed the bottle again, obviously lost for words. Zoro extended his own glass and Sanji topped him up without further comment.

They drank in silence for a bit, both lost in thought.

Zoro watched Sanji shake his head from time to time as if he was having an argument all by himself. Obviously the idea that the swordsman - maybe - liked men had struck something in the damn cook as if it had changed who Zoro was. What a stupid idea!

'Love cook, nothing has changed. I'm still the same guy I was this morning or yesterday, last month, take your pick!' Zoro tried, still not really sure why it mattered to him what the other thought.

'I know, marimo. That's not the point.'

It wasn't? 'What is it then? I mean I'm not even sure I like guys.' Wow, that had come out easier than he had thought it would. However, it hadn't escaped his notice that Sanji had flinched when he had said it.

'I can't... when I saw you with that guy earlier, him putting the moves on you and you not, I don't know, punching his lights out like you would with anyone else I was...' Zoro was getting a bit fed up with Sanji constantly pausing in mid-sentence.

Oh well, but he could see now what was going on with the cook: he was embarrassed. He had as much as admitted that he had worried about Zoro. Very pansy of him but oddly touching. But the swordsman felt generous, maybe he had mellowed a bit from all the booze. 'Cook, we are nakama. We watch each other's back.'

'Yes, of course we do. Shit, you are still not getting it.' Sanji jumped up from the bench and was now pacing the room, shooting odd glances at Zoro, rubbing his forehead as if he had a headache coming on.

'Oi, asshole, you are making me dizzy. If it's not about the liking guys thing, maybe, or watching my back, what the fuck are you so worked up about?'

'Stupid marimo, it's this!' Sanji shouted angrily before he grabbed the front of Zoro's shirt and smashed their mouths together.

Zoro was faintly aware that he had dropped his glass in surprise. Sanji was kissing him. When he opened his mouth to ask what was going on, the other took the opportunity to deepen the kiss. Soft lips working against his, warm tongue stroking into Zoro's mouth, coaxing him to reciprocate.

Apparently, his body had decided to take action without any active input from Zoro's brain because he heard the crunching of the glass under his feet as he moved his legs to allow his arms to pull the cook into his lap.

Sanji made a desperate noise in the back of his throat when he finally kissed back that went straight to his cock.

'Yeah, I think I like guys,' Zoro murmured a bit stupidly between kisses when Sanji finally got up and pulled him towards the bedroom.

End


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